NGX chairman urges business leaders to create capital market wealth

Group Chairman of NGX Group, Umaru Kwairanga. | Credit: NGX Group

The Chairman of Nigerian Exchange Group, Dr Umaru Kwairanga, has challenged Nigerian business leaders to take greater responsibility for deepening the country’s capital market, creating wealth and strengthening the national economy through increased participation in the capital market.

He gave this charge while speaking as a guest speaker at the October 2026 Monthly Webinar of the Institute of Leadership, Coaching & Strategy, held on Friday, 30 October 2026.

His presentation, titled ‘Developments in the Nigerian Stock Market: Strategic Benefits for Businesses and Business Leaders,’ examined the implications of recent developments in the capital market for businesses, investors and the Nigerian economy.

Kwairanga emphasised that businesses must move beyond viewing the capital market merely as a source of financing and recognise it as a strategic platform for building stronger, more accountable and globally competitive enterprises.

He identified the recently concluded Dangote Refinery Initial Public Offering as an important milestone in the evolution of Nigeria’s capital market, noting that bringing major corporate enterprises into the market was essential to ensuring that the market adequately reflects the size and diversity of the Nigerian economy.

According to him, large-scale corporate listings have multiplier effects beyond increasing market capitalisation. They also stimulate investor awareness, broaden market participation and improve market liquidity. The Dangote Refinery IPO, he noted, represents an important step towards achieving this objective.

He further urged businesses, particularly family-owned and founder-led enterprises, to strengthen their corporate governance structures, financial reporting, risk management and strategic planning as prerequisites for attracting sustainable investment and accessing long-term capital.

“The ability to raise capital is valuable, but the capacity to deploy it productively, create employment and generate sustainable returns is what ultimately determines business success,” he observed.

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The Chairman also highlighted the positive impact of Nigeria’s economic reforms on the capital market, pointing to improved foreign exchange availability, greater stability in business planning and renewed investor interest. He disclosed that the NGX All-Share Index appreciated by 51.19 per cent in 2025, while equities market capitalisation rose from N62.76tn to N99.38tn. As of 26 October 2026, the week of the ILCS webinar, the Index had recorded a year-to-date gain of approximately 61.48 per cent, with equities market capitalisation reaching N163.16tn.

He identified market reforms, technological innovation and improved access to capital-raising platforms as additional factors shaping the market’s transformation. In particular, he disclosed that NGX Invest, the Group’s digital capital-raising platform, had facilitated over ₦3 trillion in capital raising across more than 23 transactions.

The webinar, organised by ILCS as part of its commitment to advancing leadership knowledge and professional development, attracted members and non-members of the Institute, including business leaders, directors, corporate executives and public sector professionals.

The NGX Chairman’s presentation set the tone for a robust discussion and an engaging exchange of perspectives on how businesses could leverage capital market opportunities to finance expansion, strengthen competitiveness and create sustainable economic value.

Earlier in his welcome remarks, the President and Chairman of the Institute’s Governing Council, Dr Olasunkade Azeez, had noted that the webinar was both timely and strategic, given its potency to equip leaders with knowledge, foresight, and the tools to navigate socio-economic complexity. He described the webinar as another step in fulfilling the mission of ILCS- “bringing together thought leadership, practical wisdom, and strategic dialogue that will empower business leaders to thrive.”